How Are The Mighty Fallen
by Alivyan
Summary: Legolas and Eomer are out hunting when they are ambushed by orcs. Now Aragorn and company must struggle to save them. Chapter 4: This chapter contains Legolas torture! You know you like it.
1. Chapter One

**Disclaimer:** Not mine, but I think you already knew that.

**Warning: **This writing contains elf torture and some human torture.  Please don't flame me if you don't like these kinds of fics, because I did warn you.

**Author's Note:** Well, this is my first fanfic.  Please tell me what you think by reviewing, constructive criticism welcome! :-D

Oh yeah, and stupid question of the day.  Anyone else think Return Of The King was AMAZING?!  *waves hand around*  I do, I do!!  Yes, onto the chapter…

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The large moose walked carefully forward, its mouth dragging on the ground as he sought out more to eat.  His carefully placed steps quietly cracked the leaves under its hooves, the large animal unable to be completely silent.  Its great head bobbed slightly as it ate, unawares of the danger a few feet off.

Eomer leaned forward slightly in apprehension as the moose slowly made its journey towards his position.  The bow in his hand wavered slightly, as he was not use to the feeling.  Swords and spears were his weapons of choice.  He never had much practice with a bow, and the wood felt unfamiliar and wrong in his hands.  He could shoot, but not very well.  His finger quietly tapped against the wood of the bow, and his companion gave him an annoyed look, before turning his attention back to the moose.

"Can't we shoot now?"  Eomer finally asked, impatience getting the better of him.

Legolas gave him a side-wards glance, his own bow steady and firm in his hands.  "The skin on the moose is thick."  He whispered.  "My arrow will not penetrate deep enough to kill unless he is close."

"If he gets much closer he will trample us!"

Legolas sighed.  "Eomer, please, just be quiet.  Its eyes are on the ground, but its ears are alert and he will hear your grating voice."

Eomer looked back towards the moose.  It was still walking towards them, and now he could hear its harsh breath.  He thought that if it got any closer, the moose would surely notice them and flee.  "You are wise, Legolas, but even the wisest of all elves can make mistakes."  And having said that, Eomer leaped up from his position and let loose the arrow.

Unfortunately for Eomer, the moose heard Eomer right before he jumped up, and ran off into the bushes, fleeing from the scene.  Eomer's arrow hit empty air, and lodged itself into the trunk of a tree.

"No!!"  Eomer shouted as he watched the back of the moose as it got farther and farther away.  "Come Legolas, if we move quickly, perhaps…"  He never finished.  Turning around, he stopped when he saw Legolas standing silently behind me, giving him a look that Eomer feared greatly.  "Umm…I…"  Eomer felt heat rush over his cheeks as he lowered his head slightly in embarrassment.  "I'm sorry."

Legolas, of course, would have none of that.  "Sorry?  You're _sorry??_  Blast, did I not tell you to keep your mouth shut?  But, oh no, you're too _wise to follow my instructions.  Well, Eomer, you're intelligence just lost us a good catch that would have made a fine feast!  Can you not just do as I instruct you?  Is that too difficult?"_

"Yes?"  Eomer responded, sounding fearful, yet hopeful.  Legolas just rolled his eyes and sighed in exasperation, then moved to smack him upside the head, but Eomer caught his hand in time and pushed Legolas slightly.  Not wanting to be outdone by the man, Legolas seized up and ran into him, knocking the man down onto him bum.  Laughing slightly, Eomer reached up…

…and turned serious when he saw the expression on Legolas' face.  He was looking into the forest intently, his brow creased in confusion and concentration, his sharp eyes scanning into the forest, seemingly searching for something.  Pushing himself up using his hands, Eomer dusted off his bottom and quickly scanned the area.  Not seeing or sensing anything, he turned back to his companion.

"What is it?  What do you feel?"

Legolas hesitated a moment before answering.  The presence he felt in his mind was not clear, the beings still rather far away.  He didn't want to worry Eomer unnecessarily, as he knew how easily the man could get upset.  Instead he asked, "Where are Aragorn, and his company?"

Eomer shook his head.  "They must be…a good deal away.  We agreed that we would hunt in opposite ends of the forest, hoping to catch more game this way.  Why?  What is worrying you?"

Legolas shook his head.  "There is someone…"  Suddenly, Legolas' eyes widened and he drew an arrow from the quiver on his back.  Notching it to the string on his bow, he aimed it into the trees.  "Orcs!  Eomer, there are many!"

Legolas' excited voice told Eomer just how serious this was.  Rushing back to the place where they were hiding from the moose, he picked up his sword, which he had laid on the ground so he could better shoot the bow.  The familiar weapon felt good and strong in his hand, and he grasped the handle firmly, a small smile gracing his features, as if he was welcoming back an old friend.  But the moment was soon over, and he ran back to Legolas' side.

They awaited the battle in tense silence.  Eomer stood straight beside Legolas, his sword raised high in front of him, trying to look somewhat fierce.  Soon, he could hear the faint cries of yelling orcs, though it was obvious they were still a ways away.  Eomer looked at Legolas.  "Should we not hide?  Mayhap they will pass us by."

Legolas shook his golden head.  "No.  From the moment I clearly sensed their dark presence, they have only come steadily toward us, at a fast speed.  I believe they know we are here, though I know not how."

This worried Eomer greatly.  _How could they have possibly known we are here?  Somebody must have told them.  Perhaps a scout that we didn't notice spotted us, and went back and told the main group of orcs where we are.  Or perhaps…_ A lump formed in Eomer's throat as the last thought formed in his mind.  _No, that couldn't be it.  Even if Aragorn and Faramir were somehow captured, they would never have told the orcs our position.  They don't even know our position!  It's not possible._

His thoughts were interrupted by Legolas' sudden yell, and his mind snapped back to reality, his body tensing.  "Here they come!!"


	2. Chapter Two

**Disclaimer** and **Warning **in first chapter.

**Deana: ** Wow!  I feel so honoured that you reviewed my story, and you're my first reviewer too!  You are one of my favourite authors on ff.net.  Your story, The Sound Of Silence is so amazing, and it made my day to see that you liked mine!  I guess there's only an epilogue left for your story, but after that do you plan on writing another story, with more elf angst?  Please?  Lol.

**gemstone****:  **Yeah, my favourite stories are dark fics.  I used to think I was twisted or something, then I realized that this was quite common here in the ff.net community, lol.  Legolas and Eomer are two favourite characters of mine.  I don't know what it is about Eomer, but there's just something about him that I like.  His sexy eyes, maybe.

**Crinkle:  **I'm so happy that you think this is good enough for you to add to your favourites!  I know I have a habit of adding stories to my favourites, I think I have close to thirty!  There are just so many good stories out there!  Anyways, I hope I don't disappoint you.

**Wintersong****:  **Thank you!  And, ooh, I love your name.  It sounds so majestic!

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Eomer stood open-mouthed as the orcs poured out of the trees, dozens of them, all yelling at the top of their lungs as they rushed toward the man and the elf.  _Valar__, he thought, __look at them all.  We can not possibly fight them with any hope of winning._

Legolas seemed to be thinking the same thing.  It would be a fool's errand to stay and fight with such uneven numbers.  Turning toward Eomer and grabbing his arm, he pushed him behind him, yelling "Run!  We can not fight them!"

But Eomer did not run, only stopped short after being pushed.  Turning towards him, Legolas saw why the human stopped.  More orcs were coming at them from behind, brandishing large weapons and rushing towards them.  They were surrounded, with no hope of escape.  They would have to stay and fight.  Eomer's breath caught in his throat as the realization struck him, and he turned towards Legolas.  In the elf's face he saw that Legolas, too, saw no hope in this situation, and he gazed into his eyes with a look that words could not accurately convey.  They would both die tonight, but they would die as brothers.  Eomer smiled and nodded at Legolas, showing that he, too, thought the elf a brother, their time together forging a rare bond that was perhaps only bettered by the bond Legolas shared with Aragorn.  Turning in unison towards the orcs, Eomer raised his sword, and Legolas his twin daggers (having abandoned his bow), and they ran into the group of orcs, swinging their weapons.

Eomer sidestepped one orc, which ran past him, and swung his sword, catching the creature in the back.  It fell to the ground with a grunt, and another orc took its place.  Swinging his weapon wildly around, Eomer heard the thumping of his heart as energy and adrenaline rushed through his veins.  He suddenly felt like they would win this battle, that they would defeat the orcs after all and emerge victorious, a rather ridiculous notion considering how outnumbered they were.  A surge of satisfaction coursed through him as he swung his sword wide, felling three burly orcs at once.  But the satisfaction was short-lived.

He distantly heard the voice of an excited orc, yelling out to the others, "Hey, we got ourselves an elf here!" and a couple of happy hollers.  Spinning around quickly, he tripped on the dead body of an orc behind him, and he stumbled.  Spreading his arms out in front of him, he managed to keep from falling, but he couldn't correct himself in time to miss the blade of an orc.  It sank into the left side of his chest.

Eomer's eyes widened as time seemed to stop.  He didn't feel anything at first, and the battle and all sound and movement around him slowed and paused, as if everything was watching him.  Quite suddenly, the orc pulled the blade roughly out and blood spurted from the wound.  A roar filled his ears and the burning pain swept over him, sweeping over his torso, arms, and head.  Everything around him brightened to a blinding white light, and his knees buckled underneath him.  With his mouth hanging open, he fell forward, onto his knees.  The impact jarred his legs and jaw.  In slow motion, with his mouth hanging open slightly, he pitched forward and fell onto the ground with a thump, the dust rising up.  Blackness filled his vision, his mind wandering, attempting to run from the battle, from the fiery pain and from the fear of death.  The roaring in his ears decreased until he couldn't hear anything, except for the thumping in his chest and his own ragged breathing.  _Am I dying?  He thought, and the thought was accompanied with a wave of fear that choked in his throat.  Desperation tore through him, and he attempted to stand up, but all he managed was to move his arm slightly.  His body felt like a dead weight, and he couldn't move, could hardly breathe.  Sighing slightly, he relaxed, the fear wearing away, replaced instead with calm and acceptance.  Closing his eyes, he surrendered to the dark.  __I'm sorry Legolas…_

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Legolas spun on his heels, felling a couple vile beasts that had approached from behind.  Looking quickly around, he realized two things.  The first was that the number of orcs had greatly decreased, so much that he didn't think it was due solely to Eomer and himself.  A group of orcs must have broken away from the battle and gone elsewhere, deciding that they weren't needed as Eomer and Legolas were greatly outnumbered.  The second thing that Legolas noticed was that Eomer and himself had been separated, as he couldn't spot the man anywhere in the fray.  This worried the elf greatly, and he mumbled a quick prayer for the man's safety.  He knew the man could take care of himself.

However, his concern grew when the orc in front of him smiled, a twisted grin that wasn't at all pleasant.  In a rough voice it snarled, "Might as well give up, _elf._  Your companion already has!"

Legolas' eyes widened and his breath hitched in his throat.  Quickly ending the orc's life, he turned and searched even harder among the orcs for his friend, this time searching the ground as well.  He quickly spotted a body that definitely was not an orc, and despair clouded his mind.  _No!_  Anguish rippled over him as he tried to fight his way towards the body of his friend, but his mind was no longer focusing on the events around him, and an orc raised its sword, hitting the elf over the head and knocking him to the ground.  Darkness swept over him, and Legolas closed his eyes, a tear escaping.

_I'm sorry Eomer…_

The orc's laughter echoed through the trees as they ran.  The trees swayed and mourned when they saw what the orcs dragged behind them.  It was the unconscious body of an elf.

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Oops, my bad.


	3. Chapter Three

**Disclaimer **and **Warning **in first chapter.

**Author's Note: ** ARG!!  Sorry for the delay.  Exams are coming up.  And this chapter is a bum.  Stupid thing.  *kicks chapter*  I hope you all enjoy it, because personally, I don't like it!

**gemstone:  **Yes, I suppose that was pretty evil.  But I like to think of myself as a pretty evil person!  And here's the next instalment for you!

**Deana:  **I'm so happy that you posted a new story!  But WHOA that cliffie you left us with last chapter was just mean!!  I really hope that you update a.s.a.p.!  Hehe, and your chapter titles are so funny!  Enjoy this chapter.

**Malaika:  ***glares back*  You think your glares are bad??  Mine could make Sauron cower in shame!  Lol, anyways, here's the rest.

**Ancient Aardvark:  **Hey, neat-o name.  Very original!  And yes, Legolas and Eomer are my favourite character as well.  Along with Aragorn and Faramir and Pippin and Merry and Eowyn…yes, I have many.  But they are just so likable!!  And yes.  Go me!  I finally wrote this chapter!

**kezya:  **Here you go!

**Jessie:  **Yes.  Poor Legolas and Eomer.  And it only goes downhill from here, lol!

**Jen:  **Yes, you and your Pippin.  He was really good in Return of The King, I must say.  And you actually could write this good if you tried.  It's the trying part that's key, sister.

**Reasonably crazy:  **Aw, don't cry!  Here's the next part in my story.  And would you look at that, I didn't kill Eomer!  *gasp*  And if I may be so curious as to ask, what mistake was in the trivia game?

**Gozilla****:  **I hope you like this, as you seemed eager to read it!  :-)

**Templa**** Otmena:  **I know it has been almost a month, but exams are coming up in a week!  I wasn't even going to post this until afterwards, but I thought I should post it because I didn't want to leave people hanging for too long.  I am glad you think I portray Eomer's and Legolas' relationship well.  I really like both of them, and so of course want them to have a good friendship.  I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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The roaring in his ears did not diminish as he has hoped, but instead grew into a primal scream.  He tried to move his body in discomfort, but his head and limbs felt like lead, weighed down by some hidden force.  He struggled weakly for a while, but he couldn't move, and his frustration built.  The darkness was all around him, thick as a blanket, and he struggled to breathe through the heaviness.  Claustrophobia made his heart race, and sobs choked in his throat as he panicked.  Stopping his struggles, he breathed deeply and tried to slow his racing heart.  Tears of frustration rose with the shame of his weakness, but he pushed that away.  He needed to concentrate.

Pushing all thoughts from his mind, he lay still and waited for his thoughts to settle.  As this happened, he began to notice things, the first being the burning pain in his chest.  It attacked him in hot tendrils that burned up and down his side and legs.  Tears once again filled his eyes, and for the second time his mind was nearly overcome with panic.  But he tried to push the pain aside, struggling to focus on something else as the bile burned his throat.  Turning his head to the side, he retched miserably.  The heaves shook his body, and the pain flared in him even worse then before.  He gasped for breath, the tears snaking down his face.  _Oh Valar, please just let it stop!_

Gradually, the heaves disappeared, and he once again lay still.  His chest still pained him greatly, but he did his best to ignore it.  Instead, he tried to remember where he was or what he was doing.  He could feel the warm ground beneath his body, and knew that he was lying on his stomach, with a nasty wound in his chest.  How he had come to be in such a state, he could not recall.  He tried to connect the pieces of his broken memory, but they slipped from the grasp of his mind.

Breathing deeply, he tried once again to move his body.  This time he was successful in moving his arms out from under him.  With a mental laugh, he realized that that was the reason he had been unable to move them before.  He had been laying on them.  Gingerly stretching them from his body, he winced at the pin and needle feeling that accompanied the rushing of blood.  Sighing, he felt the warm sun on his face and hands, but did not hear any birds.  He thought this quite odd.

He could not hear birds, but with a start he realized that he could hear something else.  It wasn't loud, but could easily be heard.  _It comes from the dirt!  _Pressing his ear hard against the ground, he could clearly hear some noise echoing through the earth.  He listened to it in awe for a while.  _Whatever is making that noise must be some ways away, and yet I can still hear it through the ground!  I believe I am beginning to understand what Aragorn so likes in being a Ranger.  Frowning, he wondered what the noise could be.  He thought it was probably footfalls, but it was quite loud, so the person must be pretty heavy.  Also, there seemed to be many of them.  Heavy beings travelling in large groups…_

_Orcs!  _Suddenly, the memories came flooding back.  He remembered that he had been hunting, that many orcs had ambushed them, he had been stabbed through the chest…_Legolas!_

His eyes flew open.  The light from the sun blinded him, and as he weakly struggled onto his hands and knees, he looked down into his shadow to allow his eyes to adjust.  The pain in his side came tenfold, but the growing panic in his mind wiped out the need to rest and nurture his wound.  Struggling onto his feet, he thrust his hands out in front of him as he swayed dangerously, and sagged against a tree, gripping it hard so that he did not fall.  He pressed a hand to his angry side, and the blood flowed through his fingers.  Gasping weakly, he knew he would not be able to begin his search for his companion until the wound had been tended to.  Angrily, he admitted defeat, and sank to the ground, leaning against the tree.

Ripping pieces of his sleeve off, he gazed out through the trees, his worried eyes searching for any sign of his companion or the orcs that he knew had taken him.  Seeing nothing from his position, he sighed and bit his lip.  He would not give up hope.

_I will find you Legolas.  That I promise._

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Yeah, I know.  No Legolas.  And pretty short too.  But do not fear, Legolas will be in the next one, and hopefully it will not take as long to come out!  Hopefully.  Erm…yes.


	4. Chapter Four

**Disclaimer **and **Warning **in first chapter.

**Author's Note:  **I've been very busy with exams lately.  Hopefully, it will not always take me so long to get the chapters out.

**Deana:  **Hehehe.  Legolas' head is the least of his worries now.

**Iawen**** Londea:  **Yup, this is non-slash.  Hope that doesn't disappoint you!  :-)

**Templa**** Otmena:  **I'm glad you like it so much!  Here is the update!

**gemstone****:  **Ha, yes.  I thought that part about Eomer and his arms sounded so much like something I would do, in my klutziness.

**LegolasLover2004:  **Wheee!  Here you go!

**silvanelf****:  Legolas angst coming right up!**

**Reasonably crazy:  **Nah, I wouldn't kill Eomer…yet!  Ahh, the hobbit band.  Yes, I just heard their hit single, "The Happy Ring"!!  Lol!

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Legolas was suddenly jerked awake when he felt water splash on his face and laughter filled his ears.  His eyes flew open, and he quickly turned his head and spat out a mouthful of water, sputtering as he drew in breath.

A huge, clawed hand reached down and gripped the front of his tunic, hauling him to his feet.  His vision blurred as the pounding in his head increased, and he swayed unsteadily on his feet, nearly falling back to the ground.  Arms grabbed him though, jerking him back onto his feet.  More laughter sounded loudly, and he focused his eyes on the figure holding him.

He nearly fell back in disgust when he saw that it was an orc who was holding him up.  Looking around frantically, he saw that he was surrounded by a small group of orcs, and behind them was an even larger group of sleeping orcs.  He tried to push the orc in front of him away, but he realized with growing dread that his hands were tied behind his back.

The orc saw his rising panic and smiled, pushing Legolas back until his back connected with a tree.  "The sun is falling," the orc said in a guttural voice that scratched at Legolas' ears.  "It is time to play with our prize!"  And Legolas knew without a doubt, that the orc was talking about him.

Turning away from him, the foul creature grunted a command to the other orcs who were awake, then stalked away to the group of sleeping orcs.  Legolas took this time to look around.  The sun was indeed going down, now almost completely below the horizon, the diminishing light casting long shadows on the ground.  Legolas sighed.  He was alone in a forest at night, surrounded by a bunch of orcs.  _Not exactly ideal._

He remembered Eomer, but knew that he was not with him.  He was probably still back in the field where the fight had taken place.  Legolas had seen him fall.  He had tried to reach him, but he could not.  He had let Eomer die.  Legolas clenched his eyes shut as the tears filled them, but they rolled down his cheeks anyways.  He blamed himself for Eomer's murder, as Legolas truly believed he was dead.  If he was not, the orcs would not have left him behind.  Legolas had lost a truly great friend.

He was pulled from his mourning, however, when he saw that the other orcs had been awakened.  They were fighting amongst themselves over a fire they had built.  A pot of water sat on top of a little structure above the flame, and he could hear the hiss of steam as the water boiled.  Other orcs were eying him, and some began to approach.

A push from behind sent Legolas stumbling into their midst, and an orc moved to hit him.  But Legolas would not let him.  Instead, he ducked out of the way and kicked out at the orc, sending the creature tumbling to the ground instead.  A great roar sounded, and suddenly all the orcs were charging at Legolas, punching and kicking, trying to knock him to the ground.  Legolas avoided the blows as best as he could, and tried to kick at his attackers in turn.  It was hard to fight with his hands tied behind his back, but he put up a good fight nonetheless.  No orcs were able to land any good blows at the continuously moving elf, but Legolas was able to push a couple to the ground.  He realized that this was getting him nowhere, that the orcs were just getting madder and he wasn't even doing any damage, but at least he would let them know that he wasn't going to be an easy prisoner.  However, the fight came to an abrupt end when an orc retrieved the pot from the fire and threw the boiling contents all over the front of the struggling elf.

Legolas could not hold back his cry of pain as the hot water splashed across his face, chest and arms.  White hot burning pain shot all through him, and tears filled his eyes as he fell to the ground, his legs no longer supporting him.  He could hear a sizzling, and he knew that it was his skin.  Looking down, he saw his skin bubbling slightly, becoming raw and covered in blisters.  The smoke rose up from his body, and he let loose another wail as his face became nearly numb.  He convulsed on the ground, his fingers clawing at the dirt, trying to pull himself away from the pain.

The orcs grabbed him again.  Blearily, he saw the face of an orc in front of him.  "You be no trouble now, right elf?  No trouble!"  Legolas tried to form a reply, but he could hardly move his lips.  The orc growled, and he sent his fist flying into Legolas' face.  Legolas didn't really care, though.  He could hardly feel it anyways.

Another orc grabbed him, this one staring intently into his eyes.  "I don't like him,"  the orc declared, as if there was even the possibility that any orcs liked elves.  "He needs to learn his lesson."  Grinning evilly, the orc pulled something from his pocket.  Legolas' eyes widened when he saw the smooth edge of a long knife, which the orc held up in front of Legolas' face.  The other orcs took off his tunic and shirt, so that he was naked from the chest up.  He felt the coldness of the metal as it was pressed against his belly and took a step back.  He gasped as his feet connected with something, and he fell backwards.  Right into the fire.

Legolas' mouth opened as he tried to scream, but no sound came out.  He felt the flames lick at his back, and arched his back to get away from the heat.  The pain was blinding, and rolled over him in waves that nearly drowned him.  It was so hot, that is was freezing him, icy spikes driving deep into his back.  He rolled away, and kept rolling for a ways until he was sure that he was off the fire.  But the heat and pain remained.  Gasping for breath, the tears flowing down his face, he saw the blackness at the edge of his vision and welcomed it greatly.

The last thing he heard before blacking out was the sound of orc laughter.

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End file.
